All the talk of transfers made me ponder. Has a promoted team ever had a squad that was not desirable to anyone? I mean this has a compliment. We got promoted. We were fantastic for the whole season, both parts of it, and yet with one exception I had no concerns that someone was gonna come and swoop and take our talent.
Nottingham Forest and Notts County please! Though strangely Notts County are based in the city of Nottingham and Nottingham Forest are based in the County of Nottinghamshire (being in Rushcliffe Borough Council)
@aloysius said:
You could also argue that it would have a massive boost on morale. No player wants to go out each week expecting to lose and fearing humiliation. Sign a couple of players who can drive the team forward, everyone else will play with confidence. And if the club stays up, that's another year in the Championship and the higher salaries that entails. Everyone's a winner.
Also, Gareth has done exactly this in the past. Bayo, CMS, Sam Saunders, El Abd - none of them will have signed for the average squad salary.
None of our players are ‘going out each week expecting to lose and fearing humiliation.’
You are right @floyd. Aloysius does not understand the mentality of our manager and players, nor of the owner come to that. There is no way the players go out expecting to lose and no chance we will be spending £1m on new players.
@TheAndyGrahamFanClub said:
All the talk of transfers made me ponder. Has a promoted team ever had a squad that was not desirable to anyone? I mean this has a compliment. We got promoted. We were fantastic for the whole season, both parts of it, and yet with one exception I had no concerns that someone was gonna come and swoop and take our talent.
But isn’t this the whole ethos of our success? The Wycombe squad is the very embodiment of the phrase ‘greater than the sum of its parts’.
There are a few caveats that give me hope, even with the current squad. I do think we need to add some loanees in addition to what we have, but the following makes me think we may be able to stay somewhat afloat with the current bunch.
As others have stated, it may prove that Rotherham, Blackburn and Swansea are better than expected, and we are still acclimatizing to this tier.
Gape has not played at all. I am not expecting him to single-handedly rescue our situation, but he is the lynchpin that gives balance to the rest of the team. The midfield is going to look more natural when he is back in the side. I will add Thompson here too, as either playing with Gape, or as a backup, he will give opponents way less space.
Ikpeazu/Bayo - I genuinely think our best hope of catching teams out is doubling down on the long ball, which is why we got Uche, surely. If we try and play the way everyone else plays, we are just trying to do the same thing as everyone else except with lesser players, but if we mix in two of the most unusual targetmen possible, we will become more of a pain to play against. I am not saying it will always work, or that we should abandon any attempt at finesse, but I do think being unconventional compared to the rest of the division can only help us. So far we have a total of zero minutes with either of these two playing with 11 men on the pitch (only Uche's cameo when down to 10).
I am absolutely determined to enjoy this season no matter what, even if that means getting beaten in empty stadia and coming bottom. But I am convinced we can really give a good account of ourselves.
A very perceptive post, Shev. I believe Ikpeazu and Bayo could be the key to our season for the reasons you have so eloquently stated. Money buys you quality and we simply can’t compete on a level playing field with the bigger, richer clubs for the more talented individuals.
We have to approach this season like the old Wimbledon did when they were in the top flight, unconventional and horrible to play against.
It seems that no matter how much we learn about how Gareth and Dobbo work and what the Couhigs plans are, some people seem to have no idea how Gareth and Dobbo work or what the Couhigs plans are.
@Forest_Blue said:
Nottingham Forest and Notts County please! Though strangely Notts County are based in the city of Nottingham and Nottingham Forest are based in the County of Nottinghamshire (being in Rushcliffe Borough Council)
@Shev said:
3. Ikpeazu/Bayo - I genuinely think our best hope of catching teams out is doubling down on the long ball, which is why we got Uche, surely.
I’m intrigued by this @floyd after Saturday’s performance. Playing long in the first half yielded zero chances, the only attempts we had came from actually keeping it on the deck. In the second half we stopped hoofing it over the midfield and were far more productive. Granted, no Bayo or Uche on the pitch, but while punting it long we weren’t even able to create an opportunity, let alone threaten their goal, so I came away from Saturday thinking that our long ball game is far to easily nullified by Championship defences, but a little bit of creative passing and we were looking far more likely to score.
@Wendoverman said:
It seems that no matter how much we learn about how Gareth and Dobbo work and what the Couhigs plans are, some people seem to have no idea how Gareth and Dobbo work or what the Couhigs plans are.
And this is a reason why the sport is in the state it is in. Too many owners bow to the unreasonable demands from fans and spend too much gambling on success. We have had an incredible promotion this year and now is the time to be patient and not destroy what we've built.
@Shev said:
3. Ikpeazu/Bayo - I genuinely think our best hope of catching teams out is doubling down on the long ball, which is why we got Uche, surely.
I’m intrigued by this @floyd after Saturday’s performance. Playing long in the first half yielded zero chances, the only attempts we had came from actually keeping it on the deck. In the second half we stopped hoofing it over the midfield and were far more productive. Granted, no Bayo or Uche on the pitch, but while punting it long we weren’t even able to create an opportunity, let alone threaten their goal, so I came away from Saturday thinking that our long ball game is far to easily nullified by Championship defences, but a little bit of creative passing and we were looking far more likely to score.
You’ve surely answered your own question about our tactics by pointing out that the long ball didn’t work because we didn’t have Akinfenwa or Ickpeazu to target.
Samuel was up against three big central defenders who were always likely to be dominant. If you think we can prosper by taking on Championship teams in a contest of midfield skills, I fear that you are very much mistaken.
@glasshalffull said:
A very perceptive post, Shev. I believe Ikpeazu and Bayo could be the key to our season for the reasons you have so eloquently stated. Money buys you quality and we simply can’t compete on a level playing field with the bigger, richer clubs for the more talented individuals.
We have to approach this season like the old Wimbledon did when they were in the top flight, unconventional and horrible to play against.
I think the game has moved on a lot since Wimbledon's rough house tactics, the art of tackling has nearly disappeared, any slight mistimed tackle is now often deemed as a booking.
Pitches are like bowling greens in comparison to 80's surfaces, hence Blackburn and Swansea kept possession for such long periods. By playing long ball, you are often playing the percentages game, and the teams are so technically good at this level, that it takes an age to regain possession.
I'm not sure Gareth is able or willing to change the style he has used over the past few years, but I do fear the opposition teams will continue to create numerous chances with 70% + possession, and the level of finishing at this level will mean these chances are converted.
Talking of fixing the roof while the sun shines, is the FA stand roof still scheduled to be replaced? Seem to remember a figure around £250k being mentioned.
TBF to the team, 2nd half I thought we held on to the ball better, particularly in midfield. This area is where we are getting caned as the opposition appear to me to hold the ball better & turn the transition quicker & more precise than we do.
Morgan Gibbs-White had the skills that very much reminded me of Kevin Betsy in the way he could turn with the ball using his right foot to drag the ball back behind his left leg at speed. Really could do with Kevin at his prime now!
I think our best (only?) chance is to base our game almost entirely on preventing the opposition scoring and seeing if we can nick something on the break or from a set piece
To this end I'd be tempted to play 5 at the back to give more cover to full backs who aren't the quickest, and have an extra body in the box to defend. I'd also play two midfielders in front of the defence as an extra screen (Gape + A.N. Other)
It wouldn't be particularly pretty but until we stop teams scoring at will against us then we've got no chance
I'd also try to get a keeper in who comes out to claim crosses. Allsopp looks like he's playing well because teams have lots of shots against us and he's our keeper. But his inability to come off his line and command his area costs us time and time again.
The improved 2nd half performance (or at least the perception of it) is a bit of a red herring for me.
I obviously love the way we keep fighting and never give up and that's why we love this team so much, but it felt to me as though Swansea were very comfortable keeping us at arm's length and that had they needed to they could have stepped it up at any moment
Hiding behind the sofa after 25 but the 2nd half got me back out and gave me the confidence that we can get something out of this league and potentially stay up.
Adeniran 2nd half was excellent, he was popping up everywhere and breaking the play up nicely. He looked confident on the ball.
McCarthy was massively at fault for the first goal, and arguably could have done better for the second. GA needs to take that one on the chin, dropping last years best all-round player to shoehorn McCarthy in the side didn't work. If McCarthy has to play put him on the right of midfield and move Wheeler central.
As has been mentioned no Gape, Thompson and Akinfenwa so far in the league this season.
I suspect we will be in the market for loanees who no-one has heard of who are going to be brilliant in the future, we could do with someone like Abrahams who was at Bristol City, Mawson when he came to us, Brewster at Swansea. I expect someone coming down from Liverpool in the not too distant future, given Klopp is now in touch with Bayo!
We are one win off 18th, and two wins off 8th.
Hopefully we will get something from the Luton game. The International break will also give Ainsworth some time to reflect on the first month at this level. Plan accordingly, make some signings and hopefully come back a lot more competitive.
I feel like the way we should play is an issue in GA's own mind right now. We looked good with the ball on the floor against Brentford and Rotherham, but playing it out of the back was a total disaster against Blackburn. Samuel starting on Saturday seemed to indicate that we were going back to a more long ball and hold up style. This did bring us a few good moments down the right in the first half, but we looked better in the second playing short, quick passes.
I wonder how much of our attacking approach this season was meant to be built around Uche winning long balls and bringing Fred/Horgan/Kashket/Wheeler into play. I wonder how much of our defensive approach this season was built around Gape protecting the back four. Hopefully having those two more involved will bring a real improvement at Luton.
I think the game has moved on a lot since Wimbledon's rough house tactics, the art of tackling has nearly disappeared, any slight mistimed tackle is now often deemed as a booking.
Pitches are like bowling greens in comparison to 80's surfaces, hence Blackburn and Swansea kept possession for such long periods. By playing long ball, you are often playing the percentages game, and the teams are so technically good at this level, that it takes an age to regain possession.
I'm not sure Gareth is able or willing to change the style he has used over the past few years, but I do fear the opposition teams will continue to create numerous chances with 70% + possession, and the level of finishing at this level will mean these chances are converted.
I agree with much of what you say Chas, but I wasn’t suggesting that we emulate Wimbledon’s ‘rough house’ tactics (although opposition fans have long accused us of employing the dark arts!).
What I am saying is that the teams we come up against this season will likely have more technically accomplished players than we have because they can afford to go out and buy them. We need to rely on the strengths that got us promoted in the first place.
I always smiled when opposition managers said ‘You know what to expect from Wycombe’ despite being unable to find a way to beat us. I would enjoy hearing the same words from Championship managers this season because then I would know that we’ve got under their skin.
@MindlessDrugHoover said:
Talking of fixing the roof while the sun shines, is the FA stand roof still scheduled to be replaced? Seem to remember a figure around £250k being mentioned.
Kind of shows where we are that this possible amount falls in to a question of priorities rather than an earth shattering cloud of doom hanging over us. Anything like this we can get done will keep us from having to suddenly find money down the line.
I'm not against allocating some more money to players but I don't think expecting the good ones, that are hard enough to find anyway to accept short contracts or relegation clauses is particularly likely when you're 0 from 3 as our American colleagues call it and favourites for the drop.
Gape/Ikpeazu/Adeniran and anyone we can get in, and others learning and stepping up will help to some extent, Wheeler, Allsop and Fred showed good signs and surely have potential.
The longer ball stuff I don't think will go completely anytime soon, we are going to have to accept having less of the ball than some teams and the strengths of the team and basic setup won't be going, just at our best and with time on the ball we can mix it more. I actually thought we didn't really change second half, just more ball went in to Wheeler in the air as he was getting more joy.
Samuel, Wheeler, Bayo and no doubt Ikpeazu all have slightly different ways of being useful aerially. Samuel seems looks to drive forward and hassle defenders drawing fouls, Bayo loves a good flick on and is better at bringing people into the game. Midfield will be key, we need players to win the ball back more and be available/asking for it.
@TheAndyGrahamFanClub said:
All the talk of transfers made me ponder. Has a promoted team ever had a squad that was not desirable to anyone? I mean this has a compliment. We got promoted. We were fantastic for the whole season, both parts of it, and yet with one exception I had no concerns that someone was gonna come and swoop and take our talent.
But isn’t this the whole ethos of our success? The Wycombe squad is the very embodiment of the phrase ‘greater than the sum of its parts’.
I just wonder if that is unique. I look at the other teams that didn’t make it and they have sold or have been forced to sell their talent. So less successful teams sold their players to higher levels. We are some TEAM
@StrongestTeam said:
The longer ball stuff I don't think will go completely anytime soon, we are going to have to accept having less of the ball than some teams and the strengths of the team and basic setup won't be going, just at our best and with time on the ball we can mix it more.
This is the key, for me. We'll surely maintain a predominantly direct style, but we need to be able to show composure on the ball when we regain possession. There was a number of occasions in the first half where we turned over possession and then just gave it straight back again. Of course if we go long/direct, we are likely to concede possession a fair proportion of the time. But simple, short passes were going astray far too often. We have to be able to put a foot on the ball and take the sting out of the game, otherwise it will be wave after wave of attacks as witnessed against Blackburn.
Just re-watched the "highlights" and that last save from Rocky shows he's in far better form than times in the past. I've see him rushing off his line at times in the past but here he waited near his goal and made the stop really well.
@StrongestTeam said:
The longer ball stuff I don't think will go completely anytime soon, we are going to have to accept having less of the ball than some teams and the strengths of the team and basic setup won't be going, just at our best and with time on the ball we can mix it more.
This is the key, for me. We'll surely maintain a predominantly direct style, but we need to be able to show composure on the ball when we regain possession. There was a number of occasions in the first half where we turned over possession and then just gave it straight back again. Of course if we go long/direct, we are likely to concede possession a fair proportion of the time. But simple, short passes were going astray far too often. We have to be able to put a foot on the ball and take the sting out of the game, otherwise it will be wave after wave of attacks as witnessed against Blackburn.
Good summary.
No one is saying we should suddenly try and become a tiki taka team, but we do need to adapt to a higher division and that means keeping the ball a little better.
Someone touched on it above, but after watching our 3 games and a fair amount of last year's championship, having a midfield that shows for the ball is a necessity in this league whereas it was an option in the league below as teams will score if you keep giving them the ball.
Adeniran grew into the game and was doing this, and Gape will help, but it's this reason more than any other that I'd give you say why Bloomfield and Pattison can't start in centre midfield at this standard -they dont make themselves available enough. Freeman is a bit Marmite to a lot of fans, but hes a player who does look comfortable recieving the ball in his own half or under pressure and then finding a pass, rather than simply pumping it forward.
I’m with DrCongo on this, I think Rocky has been in excellent form since the back end of last season. Perhaps the arrival of another senior ‘keeper in Stockdale has made him up his game. We have to accept that he’s not the type of keeper who comes for crosses, but his other attributes more than make up for that.
Comments
All the talk of transfers made me ponder. Has a promoted team ever had a squad that was not desirable to anyone? I mean this has a compliment. We got promoted. We were fantastic for the whole season, both parts of it, and yet with one exception I had no concerns that someone was gonna come and swoop and take our talent.
Nottingham Forest and Notts County please! Though strangely Notts County are based in the city of Nottingham and Nottingham Forest are based in the County of Nottinghamshire (being in Rushcliffe Borough Council)
You are right @floyd. Aloysius does not understand the mentality of our manager and players, nor of the owner come to that. There is no way the players go out expecting to lose and no chance we will be spending £1m on new players.
As you said earlier, @glasshalffull, the season is only three weeks old and has a long way to go.
But isn’t this the whole ethos of our success? The Wycombe squad is the very embodiment of the phrase ‘greater than the sum of its parts’.
There are a few caveats that give me hope, even with the current squad. I do think we need to add some loanees in addition to what we have, but the following makes me think we may be able to stay somewhat afloat with the current bunch.
As others have stated, it may prove that Rotherham, Blackburn and Swansea are better than expected, and we are still acclimatizing to this tier.
Gape has not played at all. I am not expecting him to single-handedly rescue our situation, but he is the lynchpin that gives balance to the rest of the team. The midfield is going to look more natural when he is back in the side. I will add Thompson here too, as either playing with Gape, or as a backup, he will give opponents way less space.
Ikpeazu/Bayo - I genuinely think our best hope of catching teams out is doubling down on the long ball, which is why we got Uche, surely. If we try and play the way everyone else plays, we are just trying to do the same thing as everyone else except with lesser players, but if we mix in two of the most unusual targetmen possible, we will become more of a pain to play against. I am not saying it will always work, or that we should abandon any attempt at finesse, but I do think being unconventional compared to the rest of the division can only help us. So far we have a total of zero minutes with either of these two playing with 11 men on the pitch (only Uche's cameo when down to 10).
I am absolutely determined to enjoy this season no matter what, even if that means getting beaten in empty stadia and coming bottom. But I am convinced we can really give a good account of ourselves.
A very perceptive post, Shev. I believe Ikpeazu and Bayo could be the key to our season for the reasons you have so eloquently stated. Money buys you quality and we simply can’t compete on a level playing field with the bigger, richer clubs for the more talented individuals.
We have to approach this season like the old Wimbledon did when they were in the top flight, unconventional and horrible to play against.
It seems that no matter how much we learn about how Gareth and Dobbo work and what the Couhigs plans are, some people seem to have no idea how Gareth and Dobbo work or what the Couhigs plans are.
These people know nothing @Forest_Blue
They do...but they like winding us up!
I’m intrigued by this @floyd after Saturday’s performance. Playing long in the first half yielded zero chances, the only attempts we had came from actually keeping it on the deck. In the second half we stopped hoofing it over the midfield and were far more productive. Granted, no Bayo or Uche on the pitch, but while punting it long we weren’t even able to create an opportunity, let alone threaten their goal, so I came away from Saturday thinking that our long ball game is far to easily nullified by Championship defences, but a little bit of creative passing and we were looking far more likely to score.
And this is a reason why the sport is in the state it is in. Too many owners bow to the unreasonable demands from fans and spend too much gambling on success. We have had an incredible promotion this year and now is the time to be patient and not destroy what we've built.
You’ve surely answered your own question about our tactics by pointing out that the long ball didn’t work because we didn’t have Akinfenwa or Ickpeazu to target.
Samuel was up against three big central defenders who were always likely to be dominant. If you think we can prosper by taking on Championship teams in a contest of midfield skills, I fear that you are very much mistaken.
I think the game has moved on a lot since Wimbledon's rough house tactics, the art of tackling has nearly disappeared, any slight mistimed tackle is now often deemed as a booking.
Pitches are like bowling greens in comparison to 80's surfaces, hence Blackburn and Swansea kept possession for such long periods. By playing long ball, you are often playing the percentages game, and the teams are so technically good at this level, that it takes an age to regain possession.
I'm not sure Gareth is able or willing to change the style he has used over the past few years, but I do fear the opposition teams will continue to create numerous chances with 70% + possession, and the level of finishing at this level will mean these chances are converted.
Talking of fixing the roof while the sun shines, is the FA stand roof still scheduled to be replaced? Seem to remember a figure around £250k being mentioned.
TBF to the team, 2nd half I thought we held on to the ball better, particularly in midfield. This area is where we are getting caned as the opposition appear to me to hold the ball better & turn the transition quicker & more precise than we do.
Morgan Gibbs-White had the skills that very much reminded me of Kevin Betsy in the way he could turn with the ball using his right foot to drag the ball back behind his left leg at speed. Really could do with Kevin at his prime now!
I think our best (only?) chance is to base our game almost entirely on preventing the opposition scoring and seeing if we can nick something on the break or from a set piece
To this end I'd be tempted to play 5 at the back to give more cover to full backs who aren't the quickest, and have an extra body in the box to defend. I'd also play two midfielders in front of the defence as an extra screen (Gape + A.N. Other)
It wouldn't be particularly pretty but until we stop teams scoring at will against us then we've got no chance
I'd also try to get a keeper in who comes out to claim crosses. Allsopp looks like he's playing well because teams have lots of shots against us and he's our keeper. But his inability to come off his line and command his area costs us time and time again.
The improved 2nd half performance (or at least the perception of it) is a bit of a red herring for me.
I obviously love the way we keep fighting and never give up and that's why we love this team so much, but it felt to me as though Swansea were very comfortable keeping us at arm's length and that had they needed to they could have stepped it up at any moment
Hiding behind the sofa after 25 but the 2nd half got me back out and gave me the confidence that we can get something out of this league and potentially stay up.
Adeniran 2nd half was excellent, he was popping up everywhere and breaking the play up nicely. He looked confident on the ball.
McCarthy was massively at fault for the first goal, and arguably could have done better for the second. GA needs to take that one on the chin, dropping last years best all-round player to shoehorn McCarthy in the side didn't work. If McCarthy has to play put him on the right of midfield and move Wheeler central.
As has been mentioned no Gape, Thompson and Akinfenwa so far in the league this season.
I suspect we will be in the market for loanees who no-one has heard of who are going to be brilliant in the future, we could do with someone like Abrahams who was at Bristol City, Mawson when he came to us, Brewster at Swansea. I expect someone coming down from Liverpool in the not too distant future, given Klopp is now in touch with Bayo!
We are one win off 18th, and two wins off 8th.
Hopefully we will get something from the Luton game. The International break will also give Ainsworth some time to reflect on the first month at this level. Plan accordingly, make some signings and hopefully come back a lot more competitive.
COYB!
I feel like the way we should play is an issue in GA's own mind right now. We looked good with the ball on the floor against Brentford and Rotherham, but playing it out of the back was a total disaster against Blackburn. Samuel starting on Saturday seemed to indicate that we were going back to a more long ball and hold up style. This did bring us a few good moments down the right in the first half, but we looked better in the second playing short, quick passes.
I wonder how much of our attacking approach this season was meant to be built around Uche winning long balls and bringing Fred/Horgan/Kashket/Wheeler into play. I wonder how much of our defensive approach this season was built around Gape protecting the back four. Hopefully having those two more involved will bring a real improvement at Luton.
I agree with much of what you say Chas, but I wasn’t suggesting that we emulate Wimbledon’s ‘rough house’ tactics (although opposition fans have long accused us of employing the dark arts!).
What I am saying is that the teams we come up against this season will likely have more technically accomplished players than we have because they can afford to go out and buy them. We need to rely on the strengths that got us promoted in the first place.
I always smiled when opposition managers said ‘You know what to expect from Wycombe’ despite being unable to find a way to beat us. I would enjoy hearing the same words from Championship managers this season because then I would know that we’ve got under their skin.
Kind of shows where we are that this possible amount falls in to a question of priorities rather than an earth shattering cloud of doom hanging over us. Anything like this we can get done will keep us from having to suddenly find money down the line.
I'm not against allocating some more money to players but I don't think expecting the good ones, that are hard enough to find anyway to accept short contracts or relegation clauses is particularly likely when you're 0 from 3 as our American colleagues call it and favourites for the drop.
Gape/Ikpeazu/Adeniran and anyone we can get in, and others learning and stepping up will help to some extent, Wheeler, Allsop and Fred showed good signs and surely have potential.
The longer ball stuff I don't think will go completely anytime soon, we are going to have to accept having less of the ball than some teams and the strengths of the team and basic setup won't be going, just at our best and with time on the ball we can mix it more. I actually thought we didn't really change second half, just more ball went in to Wheeler in the air as he was getting more joy.
Samuel, Wheeler, Bayo and no doubt Ikpeazu all have slightly different ways of being useful aerially. Samuel seems looks to drive forward and hassle defenders drawing fouls, Bayo loves a good flick on and is better at bringing people into the game. Midfield will be key, we need players to win the ball back more and be available/asking for it.
I just wonder if that is unique. I look at the other teams that didn’t make it and they have sold or have been forced to sell their talent. So less successful teams sold their players to higher levels. We are some TEAM
This is the key, for me. We'll surely maintain a predominantly direct style, but we need to be able to show composure on the ball when we regain possession. There was a number of occasions in the first half where we turned over possession and then just gave it straight back again. Of course if we go long/direct, we are likely to concede possession a fair proportion of the time. But simple, short passes were going astray far too often. We have to be able to put a foot on the ball and take the sting out of the game, otherwise it will be wave after wave of attacks as witnessed against Blackburn.
Just re-watched the "highlights" and that last save from Rocky shows he's in far better form than times in the past. I've see him rushing off his line at times in the past but here he waited near his goal and made the stop really well.
Rocky was superb on Saturday, his judgement for when to come off his line and when to stay was spot on.
Good summary.
No one is saying we should suddenly try and become a tiki taka team, but we do need to adapt to a higher division and that means keeping the ball a little better.
Someone touched on it above, but after watching our 3 games and a fair amount of last year's championship, having a midfield that shows for the ball is a necessity in this league whereas it was an option in the league below as teams will score if you keep giving them the ball.
Adeniran grew into the game and was doing this, and Gape will help, but it's this reason more than any other that I'd give you say why Bloomfield and Pattison can't start in centre midfield at this standard -they dont make themselves available enough. Freeman is a bit Marmite to a lot of fans, but hes a player who does look comfortable recieving the ball in his own half or under pressure and then finding a pass, rather than simply pumping it forward.
Agree to disagree
I’m with DrCongo on this, I think Rocky has been in excellent form since the back end of last season. Perhaps the arrival of another senior ‘keeper in Stockdale has made him up his game. We have to accept that he’s not the type of keeper who comes for crosses, but his other attributes more than make up for that.
Allsop played really well on Saturday, definitely our man of the match. I'm his biggest critic as well